Geek Weekly: Technology Decisions' quirky tech stories for 22 September

Technology Decisions’ weekly wrap of IT fails, latest tech, new must-have gadgets, ‘computer says no’ moments and more.

My favourite Martian. The movie The Martian is a faithful representation of what it would be like to be stranded on the Red Planet, according to space engineering veteran James Oberg. Oberg raves about realism portrayed, and the attention to detail. The movie is based on a book written by Andy Weir. What a pity the makers of Gravity didn’t get him to write their screenplay.

This chip will self-destruct in… Ten seconds actually. Researchers at DARPA — the US military’s research arm —  have developed circuitry that sits on the surface of Gorilla Glass (used in smartphone displays) that has been strained in such a way that it will shatter if heated up. The heat comes from a laser. The military is interested in making circuits that can be quickly destroyed if they look like falling into enemy hands.

Back to school. The OECD says giving schoolkids iPads is a waste of money, as it doesn’t improve literacy and numeracy skills. In a report just released, the body says too much computer use actually lowers student performance. And Australia is one of the world’s highest users of technology in education. Back to the blackboard, er, drawing board then?

And back to the future. Do you have any old computers gathering dust in your garage or shed? Don’t throw them away — they could be just what a collector is looking for. At least, according to Canberran Jeremy Barr-Hyde, who’s built up a collection of 50 machines, some of them from the mid-1980s. I wonder if he’d like my old Commodore PET?

Fifty shades of drones. Watch this video of 50 remote-controlled drones swarming together. Cool.